Medical Transcriptionist

Salary range:

$35,672 – $47,902

Minimum training

1-year certificate program

Job description:

Medical transcriptionists listen to dictated recordings made by physicians and transcribe them into medical reports or correspondence. Some specialized medical transcriptionists, called medical scribes, follow doctors in emergency rooms as they see patients and record all the medical notes for that patient’s visit. The documents they produce include discharge summaries, history and physical examination reports, operative reports, consultation reports, autopsy reports, diagnostic imaging studies, progress notes and referral letters. These documents eventually become part of patients’ permanent files.

Work environment:

Medical transcriptionists may work in hospitals, physicians’ offices, transcription service offices, clinics, laboratories, medical libraries, government medical facilities or out of their own homes.

Training requirements:

Medical transcriptionists are required to complete a one-year certificate program or earn an associate's degree.

Other jobs in healthcare offer great pay, opportunities for advancement and require only a few months or years of training. They can also be stepping stones to better-paying healthcare jobs in the future.

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